All Hallows Thursday Evening Service (February 16, 2023)
Just a reminder: Beginning on Thursday, February 16, 2023, All Hallows Murray will be offering two weekly services --one on Thursday evenings and the other on Sundays.
Opening Songs:
Open this link in a new tab to hear the traditional African folk song, “What a Mighty God We Serve.” (WnS #3016)
What a mighty God we serve.
What a mighty God we serve.
Angels bow before you,
heaven and earth adore you.
What a mighty God we serve.
(Repeat ad libitum)
Open this link in a new tab to hear Richard W. Mullin’s “Awesome God.” (TFWS #2040)
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
(Repeat ad libitum)
Coda:
Our God is an awesome God!
Our God is an awesome God!
Greeting:
Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both great and small!
Hymn of Preparation:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Natalie Sleeth's "God of Great and God of Small." [WnS #3033]
God of great and God of small,
God of one and God of all,
God of weak and God of strong,
God to whom all things belong,
Alleluia, alleluia, praise be to your name.
God of land and sky and sea,
God of life and destiny,
God of never ending power,
yet beside me every hour,
Alleluia, alleluia, praise be to your name.
God of silence, God of sound,
God in whom the lost are found,
God of day and darkest night,
God whose love turns wrong to right.
God of heaven and God of earth,
God of death and God of birth,
God of now and days before,
God who reigns forevermore,
Alleluia, alleluia, praise be to your name.
Praise be to your name.
Opening Prayer:
Let us bow our heads in prayer.
Silence
Gracious God, you call us on a journey
to grow in grace and holiness.
As we travel on that journey
give us an assurance of your loving presence,
that, filled with your Spirit,
we may work with you, and our fellow pilgrims,
in the transformation of our churches and our communities
so that they become signs
of your kingdom of justice and joy. Amen.
The Revd. Ian Howarth
Scripture Reading:
A reading from the New Testament (Mark 10:13-16)
Some people brought children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples scolded the people. When Jesus noticed this, he was angry and said to his disciples, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I assure you that whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Then he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on each of them, and blessed them.
Silence
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
How We Can Make Our Church’s Worship More Child-Friendly
Throughout his earthly ministry Jesus showed compassion and concern for children as well as adults. He healed them. He delivered them from evil spirits. In the case of Jairus’ daughter, he raised her from the dead and then instructed her parents to give her something to eat, itself an act of compassion. In today’s New Testament reading Jesus speaks angrily to his disciples because they were discouraging people from bringing their children to Jesus for him to lay his hands on them and to bless them. We don’t know what was going through the minds of the disciples. They may have thought that Jesus needed a break. They may have seen children as a nuisance and they may have, like their contemporaries, not accorded them much respect. They may have thought that it was beneath the dignity of their teacher to interact with children. The attitude that children should be seen and not heard is not confined to the nineteenth century. On social media you will find posts and comments in which this attitude is expressed today. Jesus, however, welcomed the children to him. While today’s reading does not tell us, he most likely spoke to them as well as listened to them.
On Monday I posted on my blog a link to an article I found on the Christian Post website. The article reported a recent survey found that only a quarter of the members of Gen Z who were surveyed attended a church at least once a month According to Wikipedia—
Generation Z (or more commonly Gen Z for short), colloquially known as zoomers, is the demographic cohort succeeding Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1990s as starting birth years and the early 2010s as ending birth years.
On Tuesday I posted on my blog a link to a Baptist Press article which drew attention to a disturbing trending in age distribution in the Southern Baptist Convention. It reported—
Research indicates a majority of Southern Baptists are over the age of 55, while a much smaller percentage of the Convention falls within the 18-35 age range.
Among the developments that I have been following since the mid-1980s is the failure of most churches in United States to evangelize their communities and to make new disciples, the graying of the American Church, the expanding generation gap between older Americans and young Americans, the failure of most churches to retain their young people, the growing ranks of the “Nones,” those who indicate “no religious affiliation” on their census questionnaire, the growing ranks of the “Dones,” those who have dropped out of church after taking an active role in church for a number of years, the changes in American church attendance habits, the polarization of the American Church, and the sharp decline in church attendance following the initial years of the COVID-19 pandemic, a decline from which only some churches are recovering, and changes in what is regarded to be the typical size of small, medium, and large church.
While it is tempting to blame changes in our culture and in community and local regional demographics and other external factors for these developments, they are not the major reasons for the developments. The principal contributing factors are to be found in the local church. While the culture may not be as friendly toward organized religion as it may have been in the past, the causes of the problems facing the twenty-first century North American Church can be traced back to our own doorstep.
Local churches have not been doing a good job of discipling their members and attendees. They are not preparing their young people for the challenges they face in the secular world, in university and the workplace.
Too few churches have a clear discipleship pathway. A discipleship pathway is not a ministry or a program. It is a process that is designed to facilitate the growth of an individual from inquirer to full-fledged disciple of Jesus Christ, capable of faithfully representing our Lord in the world, evangelizing non-believers, and discipling new believers.
Local churches have not been doing a good job of discipling their members and attendees. They are not preparing their young people for the challenges they face in the secular world, in university and the workplace.
Too few churches have a clear discipleship pathway. A discipleship pathway is not a ministry or a program. It is a process that is designed to facilitate the growth of an individual from inquirer to full-fledged disciple of Jesus Christ, capable of faithfully representing our Lord in the world, evangelizing non-believers, and discipling new believers.
Among the consequences are congregations whose members are poorly discipled and lack maturity in Christ. This has led to young people questioning the value of being a Christian, much less a part of a particular local church. They see little difference between those who claim to be Christians and those who make no such claims.
We have also have not done a good job of supporting parents as the primary evangelizers of their children and of integrating children from an early age into the life, ministry, and worship of the local church. The research to date indicates that local churches which have integrated children into these three areas from an early age are more likely to retain young people when they reach the age that many of their peers drop out of church. When children are integrated into the life, ministry, and worship of a local church from an early age, they are more likely to appreciate and value local church involvement. It may also form a part of their identity.
When I talk about integrating children into the life, ministry, and worship of a local church from an early age, I am not talking about doing away with the infants’ nursery or the children’s and youth ministries. I am, however, talking about involving children in the life, ministry, and worship of the local church far more than we may do at the present time. This means giving them more than a token role in these three areas.
The area in which I have the most experience and some expertise is worship so I will be looking at ways of integrating children from an early age in the worship of a local church. In the closing decades of the twentieth century I was involved in launching and pioneering a new church and played a lead role in integrating the children in the congregation into the worship of the church. I subsequently wrote an unpublished occasional paper describing the steps we took to involve them more fully in the church’s worship. This talk is based upon that experience and subsequent experiences in the same area.
One of the advantages of a new church whose congregation is composed of families and individuals from a variety of background, including church backgrounds, is that it is not set in its ways as the congregation of a existing church or a new church in which the congregation comes from same church background and its core group hived off or broke away from the congregation of an existing church. We were fortunate to enjoy a supportive vicar and a supportive congregation.
To read the lessons, to lead the Prayers of the People, to collect the offering, we recruited older children and teenagers as well as adults and provided them with training. Different families took turns each week to bring forward the gifts, including the unconsecrated bread and the wine, at the offertory. Children were encouraged to take part with their parents. The vicar reserved for himself the training and recruiting of the servers at the altar. Our acolytes included a developmentally-disable youngster with Downs Syndrome.
The only lay ministry position in which we were not able to use the church’s young people was lay eucharistic minister due to the diocese’s canonical requirements. It has been my experience, however, that older children and teenagers have the necessary ability and skill to act successfully as communion assistants, distributing the communion elements without accident.
A number of the older teenagers were recruited to sing with the choir and were also given an opportunity to perform as soloists. We actively sought to encourage their talents. We also encouraged the budding musicians in the congregation.
We not only made a serious effort to make the music used in the church’s services child-friendly but also introduced the congregation to a broad range of accessible new music which the congregation sung with enthusiasm and may account in part for the early success of the new church. We used hymns with repetitions and refrains and easily-memorized lyrics that enabled even the younger children who were unable to read to join in the singing. We also introduced simple hymns and songs from a variety of sources. Among these hymns and songs were ones popularized by the Community of Celebration’s Fisherfolk teams and songbooks.
We have also have not done a good job of supporting parents as the primary evangelizers of their children and of integrating children from an early age into the life, ministry, and worship of the local church. The research to date indicates that local churches which have integrated children into these three areas from an early age are more likely to retain young people when they reach the age that many of their peers drop out of church. When children are integrated into the life, ministry, and worship of a local church from an early age, they are more likely to appreciate and value local church involvement. It may also form a part of their identity.
When I talk about integrating children into the life, ministry, and worship of a local church from an early age, I am not talking about doing away with the infants’ nursery or the children’s and youth ministries. I am, however, talking about involving children in the life, ministry, and worship of the local church far more than we may do at the present time. This means giving them more than a token role in these three areas.
The area in which I have the most experience and some expertise is worship so I will be looking at ways of integrating children from an early age in the worship of a local church. In the closing decades of the twentieth century I was involved in launching and pioneering a new church and played a lead role in integrating the children in the congregation into the worship of the church. I subsequently wrote an unpublished occasional paper describing the steps we took to involve them more fully in the church’s worship. This talk is based upon that experience and subsequent experiences in the same area.
One of the advantages of a new church whose congregation is composed of families and individuals from a variety of background, including church backgrounds, is that it is not set in its ways as the congregation of a existing church or a new church in which the congregation comes from same church background and its core group hived off or broke away from the congregation of an existing church. We were fortunate to enjoy a supportive vicar and a supportive congregation.
To read the lessons, to lead the Prayers of the People, to collect the offering, we recruited older children and teenagers as well as adults and provided them with training. Different families took turns each week to bring forward the gifts, including the unconsecrated bread and the wine, at the offertory. Children were encouraged to take part with their parents. The vicar reserved for himself the training and recruiting of the servers at the altar. Our acolytes included a developmentally-disable youngster with Downs Syndrome.
The only lay ministry position in which we were not able to use the church’s young people was lay eucharistic minister due to the diocese’s canonical requirements. It has been my experience, however, that older children and teenagers have the necessary ability and skill to act successfully as communion assistants, distributing the communion elements without accident.
A number of the older teenagers were recruited to sing with the choir and were also given an opportunity to perform as soloists. We actively sought to encourage their talents. We also encouraged the budding musicians in the congregation.
We not only made a serious effort to make the music used in the church’s services child-friendly but also introduced the congregation to a broad range of accessible new music which the congregation sung with enthusiasm and may account in part for the early success of the new church. We used hymns with repetitions and refrains and easily-memorized lyrics that enabled even the younger children who were unable to read to join in the singing. We also introduced simple hymns and songs from a variety of sources. Among these hymns and songs were ones popularized by the Community of Celebration’s Fisherfolk teams and songbooks.
We did not limit ourselves to the hymnal. We used hymns and songs not only from the Community of Celebration but also from the Vineyard Movement, from music publishers like Celebration Services, Hope Music Publishing, GIA Music Publications, Jubilate, NALM, Oregon Catholic Press, Servant, Word of God, World Library Publications, from hymn writers and composers like Timothy-Dudley Smith, Donald Fishel, John B. Foley, Marty Haugen, Michael Joncas, Graham Kendrick, Carey Landry, Twila Paris, Dan Schutte, Kathleen Thomerson, Christopher Walker, Omer Westendorf, and David Ashley White. We also used hymns and songs from the World Church.
A number of the hymns and songs we used at that time would have been seen as departing from the traditional and breaking new ground. The blend of traditional, the contemporary, and global music we used would now fall into the category of what has been dubbed the “New Traditional.”
We did not do what worship bands often do nowadays, let what Is most popular or the latest hit on the modern equivalent of contemporary Christian radio drive our selection of music to perform at the services of a local church. Or choose songs, frequently performance songs, which are popular with worship bands. We selected music that was accessible to the average singer in the congregation, including the children in the congregation. We picked hymns and songs that the congregation could learn and master in pre-service rehearsal or in the service itself, the kind of hymns and songs that almost sing themselves. We also picked hymns and songs that the congregation could learn and master after singing them during two or three services in succession. We also repeated hymns and songs with enough regularity that the congregation would own them. The hymns and songs would become the congregation’s.
We did not do what worship bands often do nowadays, let what Is most popular or the latest hit on the modern equivalent of contemporary Christian radio drive our selection of music to perform at the services of a local church. Or choose songs, frequently performance songs, which are popular with worship bands. We selected music that was accessible to the average singer in the congregation, including the children in the congregation. We picked hymns and songs that the congregation could learn and master in pre-service rehearsal or in the service itself, the kind of hymns and songs that almost sing themselves. We also picked hymns and songs that the congregation could learn and master after singing them during two or three services in succession. We also repeated hymns and songs with enough regularity that the congregation would own them. The hymns and songs would become the congregation’s.
If you had visited our church on a Sunday, you would have heard enthusiastic congregational singing, adults and children together. The warm, friendly atmosphere of the church, the lively congregational singing, and the children’s involvement in worship would become three of the new church’s strengths. The word got around and we often had visitors come to check us out, come back for a second visit, and then become a part of the congregation.
In addition to picking hymns and songs for their accessibility, we also chose them for their usefulness, their suitability for different parts of the service, their appropriateness to the season, and the tunefulness of their setting. We followed the advice of the late Betty Pulkingham and did not try to relate every hymn and every song to the theme of the lessons and /or the sermon. Rather we sought to release the whole church family into praise
In addition to picking hymns and songs for their accessibility, we also chose them for their usefulness, their suitability for different parts of the service, their appropriateness to the season, and the tunefulness of their setting. We followed the advice of the late Betty Pulkingham and did not try to relate every hymn and every song to the theme of the lessons and /or the sermon. Rather we sought to release the whole church family into praise
We introduced the practice of singing a simple alleluia or Lenten acclamation before the reading of the Gospel and we limited our service music to two or three settings that were easy to learn. One of them was Richard Proulx’s Land of Rest Acclamations.
As well as having occasional preservice rehearsals to teach a new hymn or song to the congregation and to practice it before the service, we also sometimes had informal gatherings at which a meal was served and those present sung a number of familiar hymns and songs and were taught a new hymn or song or new service music setting. The musical instrument used to accompany the singing during services and at these gatherings was an upright piano. Those present were better able to follow the notes of a hymn or song or service music setting when played on the piano, a recommended instrument for accompanying congregational singing in small congregations.
When a guitar is used to accompany congregational singing, the congregation follows the melody of the song as sung by the guitarist and not the chords of the song as played by the guitarist. The guitarist is not really accompanying the congregation’ singing but his or her own singing. If a church relies on a musical ensemble like a worship band to accompany congregational singing, the ensemble needs to include a keyboard since the notes played on the keyboard is what the congregation will be following, not the guitarist’s chords. It is also preferrable to have a variety of percussion instruments—djembe, congas, stacked bells, box drum—rather than a drum set. A number of simple hymns and songs from the World Church, once learned, work well when they are accompanied on a hand drum and/or by hand clapping.
Among the ways of involving children in a church’s services is to teach them simple hand motions and dance steps that they can do during a hymn or song. We worship God with our whole bodies and not just with our voices. Indeed, singing is only a part of our worship. Worship encompasses how we live our lives as well as the various activities in which we engage on a Sunday or some other occasion.
The hymns and songs that were selected for this evening’s service illustrate the kinds of hymns and songs that can be used to involve children more fully in a church’s worship.
Among the things that Jesus taught his disciples was that when they welcomed children, they welcomed him. Children are his representatives. Children can not only demonstrate to us the right attitude that we should have in order to enter the Kingdom of God, but they can also teach us much about worship. The Holy Spirit will use them to instruct us, and the instruction that the Holy Spirit may give us may be non-verbal.
I recall one young elementary school age girl who learned Eucharistic Prayer A from the Episcopal Church's 1979 Book of Common Prayer by heart. This eucharistic prayer was the one we most often used at our church. She would recite it quietly along with the vicar when he was consecrating the bread and the wine for Holy Communion. A busybody in the congregation took except to her recitation of the prayer and told her not to do it. I would have left her alone. If she had learned to recite the prayer from memory, she had also most likely assimilated what the prayer taught.
As well as having occasional preservice rehearsals to teach a new hymn or song to the congregation and to practice it before the service, we also sometimes had informal gatherings at which a meal was served and those present sung a number of familiar hymns and songs and were taught a new hymn or song or new service music setting. The musical instrument used to accompany the singing during services and at these gatherings was an upright piano. Those present were better able to follow the notes of a hymn or song or service music setting when played on the piano, a recommended instrument for accompanying congregational singing in small congregations.
When a guitar is used to accompany congregational singing, the congregation follows the melody of the song as sung by the guitarist and not the chords of the song as played by the guitarist. The guitarist is not really accompanying the congregation’ singing but his or her own singing. If a church relies on a musical ensemble like a worship band to accompany congregational singing, the ensemble needs to include a keyboard since the notes played on the keyboard is what the congregation will be following, not the guitarist’s chords. It is also preferrable to have a variety of percussion instruments—djembe, congas, stacked bells, box drum—rather than a drum set. A number of simple hymns and songs from the World Church, once learned, work well when they are accompanied on a hand drum and/or by hand clapping.
Among the ways of involving children in a church’s services is to teach them simple hand motions and dance steps that they can do during a hymn or song. We worship God with our whole bodies and not just with our voices. Indeed, singing is only a part of our worship. Worship encompasses how we live our lives as well as the various activities in which we engage on a Sunday or some other occasion.
The hymns and songs that were selected for this evening’s service illustrate the kinds of hymns and songs that can be used to involve children more fully in a church’s worship.
Among the things that Jesus taught his disciples was that when they welcomed children, they welcomed him. Children are his representatives. Children can not only demonstrate to us the right attitude that we should have in order to enter the Kingdom of God, but they can also teach us much about worship. The Holy Spirit will use them to instruct us, and the instruction that the Holy Spirit may give us may be non-verbal.
I recall one young elementary school age girl who learned Eucharistic Prayer A from the Episcopal Church's 1979 Book of Common Prayer by heart. This eucharistic prayer was the one we most often used at our church. She would recite it quietly along with the vicar when he was consecrating the bread and the wine for Holy Communion. A busybody in the congregation took except to her recitation of the prayer and told her not to do it. I would have left her alone. If she had learned to recite the prayer from memory, she had also most likely assimilated what the prayer taught.
Rather than discourage children from praying set prayers and prayers in their own words aloud, we should encourage them. During the times before, during, and after the Prayers of the People when the congregation is given an opportunity to engage free prayer, children can be taught to join them, sending brief arrow prayers winging their way to the throne of grace, sharing their concerns with their Father in heaven.
This leads us to the ticklish question of whether young children should receive Holy Communion and at what age. There are a number of different opinions on the subject. One is that sacraments are God’s actions toward us and not our actions toward God. If we baptize infants and young children on that basis, there is no reason not to admit them to the Lord’s Table.
This leads us to the ticklish question of whether young children should receive Holy Communion and at what age. There are a number of different opinions on the subject. One is that sacraments are God’s actions toward us and not our actions toward God. If we baptize infants and young children on that basis, there is no reason not to admit them to the Lord’s Table.
It is noted that the practice of delaying their first communion until after they were confirmed resulted from an unsuccessful attempt to encourage people to present themselves or their children for confirmation by making confirmation a condition of admission to the Lord’s Table. It didn’t work but the Church fell into the practice of deferring admitting adults and children to the Lord’s Table until they had been confirmed. In the reformed Church of England a working knowledge of the content of the Prayer Book Catechism would be made a requirement for confirmation,.
I was not confirmed until I was 18 years old and received Holy Communion for the first time on the Sunday on which I was confirmed. One of the consequences is that I did not set store in receiving Holy Communion as a means of grace until much later in life. Means of grace are the ways God invigorates, strengthens, and confirms our faith. They include prayer; hearing, reading and meditating on Holy Scripture, and receiving Holy Communion.
It is often argued in support of this second view that children need to have some understanding of the sacrament before they are admitted to the Lord’s Table. Those who support the admission of baptized infants and young children to the Lord’s Table irrespective of their understanding of the sacrament counter that no one completely understands the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper since it is a mystery.
The Anglican Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, in contrast to the Lutheran view that the sacrament imparts faith to the communicant, teach that a sincere repentance from sin and a living faith are necessary for the communicant to benefit from receiving Holy Communion. Otherwise, the communicant receives the sacramental bread and wine to their own undoing.
John Wesley’s abbreviation of the Thirty-Nine Articles omits this particular article. Wesley believed that one of the functions of the Lord’s Supper was that of a converting ordinance through which God conveys prevenient grace, awakening and arousing the faith of the communicant who is not yet a believer. Methodists and other Wesleyans generally practice open communion, admitting all children and adults to the Lord’s Table.
My three nieces were baptized only after they had some understanding of the sacrament of baptism. This was done at their father’s insistence who believed that they should decide for themselves whether they wanted to be baptized. They all had started elementary school. They received Holy Communion for the first time on the Easter Sunday on which they were baptized.
I was not confirmed until I was 18 years old and received Holy Communion for the first time on the Sunday on which I was confirmed. One of the consequences is that I did not set store in receiving Holy Communion as a means of grace until much later in life. Means of grace are the ways God invigorates, strengthens, and confirms our faith. They include prayer; hearing, reading and meditating on Holy Scripture, and receiving Holy Communion.
It is often argued in support of this second view that children need to have some understanding of the sacrament before they are admitted to the Lord’s Table. Those who support the admission of baptized infants and young children to the Lord’s Table irrespective of their understanding of the sacrament counter that no one completely understands the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper since it is a mystery.
The Anglican Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, in contrast to the Lutheran view that the sacrament imparts faith to the communicant, teach that a sincere repentance from sin and a living faith are necessary for the communicant to benefit from receiving Holy Communion. Otherwise, the communicant receives the sacramental bread and wine to their own undoing.
John Wesley’s abbreviation of the Thirty-Nine Articles omits this particular article. Wesley believed that one of the functions of the Lord’s Supper was that of a converting ordinance through which God conveys prevenient grace, awakening and arousing the faith of the communicant who is not yet a believer. Methodists and other Wesleyans generally practice open communion, admitting all children and adults to the Lord’s Table.
My three nieces were baptized only after they had some understanding of the sacrament of baptism. This was done at their father’s insistence who believed that they should decide for themselves whether they wanted to be baptized. They all had started elementary school. They received Holy Communion for the first time on the Easter Sunday on which they were baptized.
It was left to a child’s parents to decide when they would be admitted to the Lord’s Table at my mother’s church where they were baptized. Baptism was the only requirement for admission. It was thought that parents were in the best position to know whether a child was ready to receive Holy Communion. In reality the determining factor was the level of comfort of the parents with their child’s reception of Holy Communion.
Our church, while admitting to the Lord’s Table those baptized infants and children who showed a desire to receive the sacramental bread and wine also offered a first communion class for all baptized children who had not yet received Holy Communion for the first time.
The late Howard Hanchey, an Episcopal priest, a longtime member of the faculty of the Virginia Theological Seminary, and an author of a number of books on Christian education and church evangelism, in his writings took the position that the participation of a child from an early age in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper played a role in the transformation of natural faith into saving faith.
Those who are responsible for determining what the church’s policy on admitting children to the Lord’s Table will need to consider the effects of that policy on children’s sense of belongingness—whether they feel welcomed and accepted by the church and to what extent and how it may affect their future relationship with the church and the larger Christian community.
The late Howard Hanchey, an Episcopal priest, a longtime member of the faculty of the Virginia Theological Seminary, and an author of a number of books on Christian education and church evangelism, in his writings took the position that the participation of a child from an early age in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper played a role in the transformation of natural faith into saving faith.
Those who are responsible for determining what the church’s policy on admitting children to the Lord’s Table will need to consider the effects of that policy on children’s sense of belongingness—whether they feel welcomed and accepted by the church and to what extent and how it may affect their future relationship with the church and the larger Christian community.
It is noteworthy that when the apostle Paul talks about discerning the body in the Lord’s Supper, he is not necessarily referring to discerning Jesus’ substantive presence in the sacramental bread and wine but to seeing the latecomers as members of the Body of Christ.
Those who practice believer baptism do not view unbaptized attendee of their church’s services as members of the Body of Christ. How do they see baptized children is a question with which those who practice pedobaptism must wrestle. Do they recognize them as full members of the Body of Christ or do they see them as something else? Children, it must be noted, do notice our ambivalence in this particular area and it can affect their relationship not only to the local church but also the Christian faith.
In light of the impact that it can have upon the young people in our churches, the greater inclusion of children of all ages in the life, ministry, and worship of the local church is something that concerns all Christians, and not just church leaders, Christian parents, and the young people themselves. We are at an important juncture in the history of Christianity in North America. The decisions that we make now will determine to a large extent what kind of presence the Christian faith will have in the United States, Canada, and Mexico in the not too distant future.
Silence
Hymn of Response:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Rise Up & Sing’s arrangement of Tom Colvin’s hymn, “Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love” for cantor and assembly (TUMCH #432)
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Neighbors are rich folk and poor,
Neighbors are black, brown, and white,
neighbors are nearby and far away.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
These are the ones we should serve,
these are the ones we should love,
all these are neighbors to us and you.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Jesu (Jesu), Jesu (Jesu), fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Concerns and Prayers
The following is prayed, during which any person may offer a brief prayer of intercession or petition.
After each prayer, the leader may conclude: Loving God and all may respond: Hear our prayer.
Pray for the Church throughout the world – that the Spirit will revive and refresh the Church in every part…
Pray for our local church and the churches in our area – that we may be waiting attentively for the ways God is speaking through the Spirit…
Pray for those who come to our church, and for those on the fringes - that they may have an assurance of God’s love and know that they are saved through Christ…
Pray for those who are in leadership in the Church - that they may be strengthened and upheld in their ministries…
Pray for those whom we know who do not know of God’s love – for friends or family, for neighbors or colleagues, that God’s Spirit may fill their hearts…
Pray for the Kingdom of God - that it may break through in us and among us, that the earth may be filled with the glory of God…
Pray for ourselves - that God’s Spirit will speak in our hearts, that we may be bold to proclaim the gospel in our words and actions…
Other biddings may be added here to reflect local circumstances.
We make our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, as we join in the words that he himself has taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Closing Hymn:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Natalie Sleeth’s “Go Ye, Go Ye into the World.” [TFWS # 2239]
Go ye, go ye into the world
And make disciples of all the nations
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Go ye go, ye into the world
And take the Gospel to all the people
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Go ye, go ye into the world
And tell the story to all the believers
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Benediction:
May the Lord bless us and keep us,
May the Lord make his face to shine on us and be gracious to us,
May the Lord look on us with kindness and give us peace. Amen.
Those who practice believer baptism do not view unbaptized attendee of their church’s services as members of the Body of Christ. How do they see baptized children is a question with which those who practice pedobaptism must wrestle. Do they recognize them as full members of the Body of Christ or do they see them as something else? Children, it must be noted, do notice our ambivalence in this particular area and it can affect their relationship not only to the local church but also the Christian faith.
In light of the impact that it can have upon the young people in our churches, the greater inclusion of children of all ages in the life, ministry, and worship of the local church is something that concerns all Christians, and not just church leaders, Christian parents, and the young people themselves. We are at an important juncture in the history of Christianity in North America. The decisions that we make now will determine to a large extent what kind of presence the Christian faith will have in the United States, Canada, and Mexico in the not too distant future.
Silence
Hymn of Response:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Rise Up & Sing’s arrangement of Tom Colvin’s hymn, “Jesu, Jesu, Fill Us with Your Love” for cantor and assembly (TUMCH #432)
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Neighbors are rich folk and poor,
Neighbors are black, brown, and white,
neighbors are nearby and far away.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
These are the ones we should serve,
these are the ones we should love,
all these are neighbors to us and you.
Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Jesu (Jesu), Jesu (Jesu), fill us with your love,
show us how to serve the neighbors we have from you.
Concerns and Prayers
The following is prayed, during which any person may offer a brief prayer of intercession or petition.
After each prayer, the leader may conclude: Loving God and all may respond: Hear our prayer.
Pray for the Church throughout the world – that the Spirit will revive and refresh the Church in every part…
Pray for our local church and the churches in our area – that we may be waiting attentively for the ways God is speaking through the Spirit…
Pray for those who come to our church, and for those on the fringes - that they may have an assurance of God’s love and know that they are saved through Christ…
Pray for those who are in leadership in the Church - that they may be strengthened and upheld in their ministries…
Pray for those whom we know who do not know of God’s love – for friends or family, for neighbors or colleagues, that God’s Spirit may fill their hearts…
Pray for the Kingdom of God - that it may break through in us and among us, that the earth may be filled with the glory of God…
Pray for ourselves - that God’s Spirit will speak in our hearts, that we may be bold to proclaim the gospel in our words and actions…
Other biddings may be added here to reflect local circumstances.
We make our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, as we join in the words that he himself has taught us:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Closing Hymn:
Open this link in a new tab to hear Natalie Sleeth’s “Go Ye, Go Ye into the World.” [TFWS # 2239]
Go ye, go ye into the world
And make disciples of all the nations
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Go ye go, ye into the world
And take the Gospel to all the people
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Go ye, go ye into the world
And tell the story to all the believers
Go ye go ye into the world
And I will be with you there
Benediction:
May the Lord bless us and keep us,
May the Lord make his face to shine on us and be gracious to us,
May the Lord look on us with kindness and give us peace. Amen.
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